Semiconductor device having a low-resistance gate electrode

ABSTRACT

A gate electrode structure in a semiconductor device has a doped polysilicon (DOPOS) film, a tungsten silicide film, a tungsten silicide nitride film, a tungsten nitride film and a tungsten film consecutively as viewed from the substrate. The tungsten silicide nitride film is formed between the tungsten silicide film and the tungsten nitride film by a plurality of heat treatments. The tungsten silicide nitride film has a small thickness of 2 to 5 nm and has a lower interface resistance for achieving a low-resistance gate electrode, suited for a higher-speed operation of the semiconductor device.

Cross Reference to Related Application

This application is a divisional of U.S. application Ser. No.10/302,245, filed Nov. 22, 2002 now U.S. Pat. No. 6,800,543.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

(a) Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a semiconductor device having alower-resistance gate electrode and a method for manufacturing such asemiconductor device.

(b) Description of the Related Art

In large-scale integrated circuits (LSIs), a variety of gate structuresare developed in order to realize a gate electrode having a lowerresistance for achieving a higher operational speed. For example, ametallic gate electrode made of aluminum (Al) deposited on a gate oxidefilm has the advantage of lower resistance. However, this metallic gateelectrode suffers from the disadvantage of lower heat resistance athigher temperature ranges. Thus, such a gate electrode is not suited fora self-alignment structure where the gate electrode must be formedbefore a thermal treatment at a higher temperature.

A silicon gate electrode made of doped polysilicon (DOPOS) formed on agate oxide film is also known as a low-resistance gate electrode. Such aDOPOS gate electrode can be formed on the gate oxide film at an earlierstage of a fabrication process for the semiconductor device, forexample, directly after formation of the gate oxide film, whereby it issuited for the self-alignment process. The DOPOS gate electrode has anadditional advantage that contamination of the gate oxide film by dustscan be prevented; however, it has the advantage of a higher sheetresistance of the DOPOS and there is an inevitable limit on achieving alower-resistance gate electrode.

There is also a known low-resistance gate electrode having a polycidestructure, wherein a high-melting-point metal (refractory metal)silicide layer is deposited on a thin DOPOS film formed on a gate oxidefilm, for achieving a lower-resistance gate electrode. The polycide gateelectrode has the advantages of higher heat resistance which is suitedfor the self-alignment process, a non-reaction property of the polycidegate with the gate oxide film and so on. However, the polycide gatestructure also has the disadvantage of higher sheet resistance, and thusthere is a limit on the achievement of a low-resistance gate electrode.

Another gate electrode structure is also known for achieving alower-resistance gate electrode, wherein a refractory metal layer suchas made of tungsten is formed on a thin DOPOS film. This gate electrodestructure has lower sheet resistance compared to the silicon gateelectrode, thereby improving the response speed of a MOS device.However, in this structure, the refractory metal layer reacts with theDOPOS film to form a suicide of the refractory metal, such as WSi₂,similar to the polycide gate structure, and accordingly, there is alimit on further reduction of the resistance of the gate electrode. Inaddition, there are other disadvantages of reduction in the impurityconcentration of the DOPOS film and diffusion of the metallic atoms fromthe refractory metal layer.

Patent Publication JP-A-11-233451 describes a technique for suppressingthe reaction between the refractory metal layer and the DOPOS film at ahigh temperature range by interposing therebetween a refractory metalnitride layer. In the described technique, a heat treatment is conductedafter the refractory metal nitride layer is formed on the DOPOS film,thereby removing the excessive nitrogen component in the refractorymetal nitride layer and converting the entire refractory metal nitridelayer into a: refractory metal silicide nitride layer.

In the technique described in the publication, the heat treatmentconducted to the refractory metal nitride layer formed on the DOPOS filmcauses a strong reaction between the refractory metal nitride layer andthe DOPOS film, whereby a thick refractory metal silicide nitride layeris formed. Although the refractory metal silicide nitride layergenerally has a higher barrier function, a higher thickness for therefractory metal silicide nitride layer has a tendency to suppress thereduction in the resistance of the gate electrode structure, because therefractory metal silicide nitride layer has a higher interfaceresistance depending on the composition and the film structure thereof.Thus, there is a limit on the reduction in the resistance of the gateelectrode.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the above problem in the conventional techniques, it is anobject of the present invention to provide a method for manufacturing asemiconductor device having a low-resistance gate electrode structureincluding a DOPOS film and a refractory metal silicide nitride layer.

It is another object of the present invention to provide such asemiconductor device.

The present invention provides a method for manufacturing a gateelectrode in a semiconductor device, including the steps of: forming alayer structure including a doped polysilicon (DOPOS) film, a silicidefilm including a first refractory metal, a nitride film including thefirst refractory metal, and a metallic film including a secondrefractory metal, consecutively as viewed from a substrate; and heattreating the layer structure as a whole.

The present invention also provides a semiconductor device including asubstrate, and a gate electrode structure overlying the substrate, thegate electrode structure including a doped polysilicon (DOPOS) film, asilicide film including a first refractory metal, a nitride filmincluding the first refractory metal, and a metallic film including asecond refractory metal, consecutively as viewed form the substrate.

In accordance with the semiconductor device manufactured by the methodof the present invention and the semiconductor device of the presentinvention, the refractory metal silicide nitride film formed in the gateelectrode structure by the heat treatment conducted to the gateelectrode structure as a whole has a smaller thickness compared to theconventional refractory metal silicide nitride film, and thus has asmaller interface resistance, thereby achieving a higher operationalspeed for the semiconductor device.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIGS. 1A to 1F are sectional views of a semiconductor device accordingto an embodiment of the present invention during consecutive steps offabrication process thereof.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the semiconductor device of theembodiment during measurement of the sheet resistance thereof.

FIG. 3 is a graph showing the penetrating current characteristic of theinterface in the gate electrode structure of the semiconductor device ofthe embodiment with respect to the applied voltage.

FIG. 4 is a graph showing the penetrating current characteristic of theinterface in the gate electrode structure of a conventionalsemiconductor device with respect to the applied voltage.

PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

Now, the present invention is more specifically described with referenceto the accompanying drawings.

Referring to FIGS. 1A to 1F, there are shown consecutive steps of thefabrication process of a semiconductor device according to an embodimentof the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1A, a LOCOS layer (or elementisolation oxide film) 11 is selectively formed on a surface region of asilicon substrate 10 for isolation of the area of the silicon substrate10 into a plurality of isolated regions, followed by heat treating theresultant wafer in a chamber in a steam and oxygen ambient at atemperature of 850 degrees C. for four hours to form a 4-nm-thick gateoxide film 12 in each isolated region of the surface of the siliconsubstrate 10.

Subsequently, a 100-nm-thick DOPOS film 13 is formed on the gate oxidefilm 12 by a heat treatment conducted for an hour. The heat treatment issuch that the DOPOS film 13 is formed on a silicon wafer maintained at atemperature of 580 degrees C. in a mixture gas ambient whereinmonosilane (SiH₄) and phosphine (PH₃) are introduced at flow rates of3000 sccm and 70 sccm, respectively, while maintaining the chamberpressure at 100 Pa. By this procedure, the DOPOS film 13 has aphosphorus concentration of 2E20 atoms/cm³.

The DOPOS film 13, as shown by dotted lines in FIG. 1A, has athree-layer structure wherein the crystal structure has three differentorientations, which structure is obtained by a three-stage deposition ofpolysilicon. The DOPOS film 13 having such a crystal structure acts as adiffusion stopper for preventing the tungsten atoms in a tungsten layerto be formed later thereon from diffusing toward the silicon substrate10.

The DOPOS film 13 is then washed by a mixture liquid of hydrofluoricacid (HF) and aqueous hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) to remove a native oxidefilm etc. which may be formed on the surface thereof. Thereafter, asshown in FIG. 1B, a tungsten silicide (WSi₂) film 14 is formed on theDOPOS film 13 by a CVD technique.

In the deposition of the WSi₂ film on the DOPOS film 13, a sputteringtechnique may be used instead of the CVD technique. In the depositionstep, the silicon substrate 10 is heated up to a temperature of 450degrees C. in the deposition chamber, and thermally reacted for 30seconds in a mixture gas ambient, wherein dichlorosilane (SiH₂Cl₂) andtungsten hexafluoride (WF₆) are introduced at flow rates of 200 sccm and2 sccm, respectively.

The preferable thickness of the WSi₂ film 14 is 3 to 20 nm for achievinga desirable interface resistance between the DOPOS film 13 and atungsten nitride (WN) film to be formed later on the WSi₂ film 14. Alarger thickness above 20 nm for the WSi₂ film makes it difficult topattern the gate electrode structure as a whole and may cause peel-offof a metallic film to be formed overlying the WSi₂ film 14. On the otherhand, a lower thickness below 3 nm for the WSi₂ film 14 causes a largermechanical stress acting on the gate oxide film 12 due to aggregationetc. of WSi₂ during a high-temperature heat treatment thereof, tothereby degrade the reliability of the gate oxide film 12, whichtendency generally appears more likely at a smaller thickness of thegate oxide film 12.

The impurities in the WSi₂ film has a diffusion coefficient higher thanthe impurities in silicon by an order of three to six digits ofmagnitude. Accordingly, depending on the thickness of the WSi2 film andthe process conditions of the high-temperature heat treatment, theimpurities in the DOPOS film 13 may be absorbed by the WSi₂ film 14 tocause reduction in the impurity concentration of the interface betweenthe WSi₂ film 14 and the DOPOS film 13 thereby increasing the interfaceresistance. For prevention of such a reduction in the interfaceresistance, impurities such as phosphorous (P) and arsenic (As) shouldbe additionally introduced to the DOPOS film 13 penetrating through theWSi₂ film 14 after deposition thereof, or the DOPOS film 13 should havea higher impurity concentration during the deposition thereof.

In this embodiment, the additional introduction of the impurities,phosphorous, is conducted for the DOPOS film 13, after the deposition ofthe WSi₂ film 14, at an acceleration energy of 10 keV and a dosage of5E15 atoms/cm². This introduction improves the heat resistance of theWSi₂ film 14 and prevents peel-off of the overlying films during a heattreatment in the process for forming the gate electrode structure.

Subsequently, the WSi₂ film 14 is subjected to an outgassing treatmentto remove the residual gas in the WSi₂ film 14. It is to be noted that alarger thickness of the WSi₂ film 14 formed by the CVD technique islikely to cause accumulation of the residual gas in the vicinity of theupper interface of the WSi₂ film 14 during the heat treatment conductedafter the gate electrode structure is formed. The accumulation of theresidual gas degrades the adherence between the WSi₂ film 14 and theoverlying film to cause a peel-off of the overlying film or an increaseof the interface resistance.

A rapid thermal anneal (RTA) treatment for 60 seconds is used in theembodiment as the outgassing heat treatment, while introducing a mixturegas of argon (Ar) and nitrogen (N₂) or ammonium (NH₃). The RTA treatmentshould be preferably conducted at a temperature equal to or above 700degrees C. or more preferably equal to or above 850 degrees C. in viewof the outgassing efficiency.

A higher temperature above 1000 degrees C. or a longer treating timelength above 60 seconds for the RTA treatment may cause additionaldiffusion of impurities from the DOPOS film 13, which may increase theinterface resistance of the DOPOS film 13 and the WSi₂ film 14 or changethe threshold voltage of the resultant MOSFET due to the change of theimpurity concentration of the DOPOS film 13. The outgassing heattreatment also achieves stabilization of the films already formed atthat time, i.e., activation of the impurities in the DOPOS film 13,recovery of the crystalline structure of the DOPOS film 13 andcrystallization of the WSi₂ film 14. The interface between the WSi₂ film14 and the DOPOS film 13 thus formed has an ohmic characteristic of theinterface resistance in the relationship between the applied voltage andthe induced current. The interface resistance of a sample had a sheetresistance as low as 200 Ω-μm² as will be described later.

Subsequently, a pretreatment is conducted before sputtering of tungstenand tungsten nitride. The pretreatment is such that the surface of theWsi₂ film 14 is washed for 30 seconds by using hydrofluoric acid to etchthe native oxide film on the WSi₂ film 14. The pretreatment should bepreferably conducted for a time length corresponding to removal of athermal oxide film having a thickness of around 1 nm. A smaller timelength for the etching does not effectively remove the native oxidefilm, degrading the adherence of the electrode material on the WSi₂ film14. On the other hand, a larger time length for the etching degrades themorphology of the surface of the WSi₂ film 14, thereby affecting theproperty of the electrode material formed later thereon to cause defectssuch as increase of the line resistance.

Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 1C, a 10-nm-thick tungsten nitride film(WN) 16 and a 80-nm-thick tungsten (W) film 17 are consecutivelysputtered onto the surface of the WSi₂ film 14 after washing thereof byusing hydrofluoric acid. A CVD technique may be used instead fordepositing the tungsten nitride film 16 and the tungsten film 17.

The tungsten nitride (WNx) film 16 has a lower bond energy among othernitrides, is likely to generate WSiN, and acts as a diffusion barrierlayer which prevents an undesired reaction of the tungsten atoms afterdiffusion thereof from the tungsten film 17 toward the DOPOS film 13 andan undesired reaction of the impurities such as phosphorous afterdiffusion thereof from the DOPOS film 13 toward the tungsten film 17.The tungsten film 17 has a small thickness and yet provides a lowerresistance for the gate electrode-structure.

For deposition of the tungsten nitride film 16 and the tungsten film 17,the silicon substrate 10 is heated up to a temperature of 200 degrees C.in a vacuum chamber which receives therein a tungsten target, followedby introduction of a mixture gas wherein argon gas and nitrogen gas areintroduced at flow rates of 40 sccm and 60 sccm, respectively. Whilemaintaining the internal pressure of the vacuum chamber at 1330 Pa, a DCelectric field is applied at a power of 800 mW to generate plasma forsputtering the tungsten target. The tungsten atoms sputtered from thetungsten target reacts with the active nitrogen in the plasma and isdeposited on the WSi₂ film 14 as a tungsten nitride (WN) film 16. The WNfilm 16 preferably has a thickness of 5 to 200 nm, and a thickness of 10nm for the WN film 16 is obtained by a time length of 20 seconds for thesputtering. A smaller thickness below 5 nm for the WN film 16 degradesthe barrier property of the WN film 15 and a larger thickness above 20nm makes it difficult to pattern the same. It is to be noted that theWSi₂ film 14 underlying the WN film 16 includes phosphorous ions at asuitable concentration to have a lower sheet resistance for achieving anexcellent current path.

In view that the heat resistance of the tungsten nitride film 16 isaffected by the composition thereof, the atomic ratio (x) of tungsten tonitrogen in the tungsten nitride (WxN) film 16 is preferably 0.8 to 2.0and more preferably 1.4 to 1.9. If x is selected around 1.7, desorptionof nitrogen atoms-can be suitably suppressed during the RTA treatmenteven at a higher temperature rise as high as 1000° C./60 seconds.

For example, if the WN layer 16 is directly formed on the DOPOS film 13differently from the above embodiment, an amorphous compound (WSiN)layer including nitrogen and silicon and having a higher barrierfunction is formed to an excessively larger thickness. The excessivelylarger thickness increases the interface resistance between the WN film16 and the DOPOS film 13 however. In the present embodiment, since theWN film 16 is formed on the DOPOS film 13 with an intervention of theWSi₂ film 14, the amorphous compound film has a smaller thicknessbecause of stabilization of bonds between the tungsten and silicide.Thus, the increase of the interface resistance caused by the amorphouscompound layer between the tungsten nitride film 16 and the WSi₂ film 14can be suppressed.

Following the deposition of the tungsten nitride film 16, a tungstenfilm 17 is deposited thereon. In this step, introduction of nitrogen gasinto the chamber is stopped, and the DC power is increased up to 1500watts, while generating plasma only by using argon gas. This depositionis conducted for 40 seconds to form a tungsten nitride film 17 having athickness of 80 nm.

Subsequently, the gate electrode structure as described above issubjected to patterning. First, a 200-nm-thick silicon nitride (SiN)film 18 is deposited on the tungsten film 17 by a CVD technique, asshown in FIG. 1D. Then, a resist film not shown in the figure is formedthereon by coating, followed by patterning thereof to have a gateelectrode pattern and by subsequent dry etching of the SiN film 18 toform an etching mask pattern 18.

After removing the resist film pattern and subsequent washing, thetungsten film 17, tungsten nitride film 16, WSi₂ film 14 and DOPOS film13 are selectively etched by a dry etching technique using the etchingmask pattern 18 as a mask to form a gate electrode structure 22 as shownin FIG. 1E. In this step, since the portion of the gate oxide film 12 incontact with the edge of the gate electrode structure (shown by dottedcircle) 22 is likely to be damaged by the dry etching, a heat treatmentis conducted for improving the profile thereof.

The heat treatment for improvement of the profile is such that thesilicon wafer received in the chamber filled with hydrogen gas, steamand nitrogen gas is heated up to a temperature of 750 to 900 degrees C.to allow the silicon and the gate oxide film 12 to be selectivelyoxidized to restore the portion damaged by the dry etching. This thermaloxidation is conducted for about an hour to form a 5-nm-thick side-walloxide films 20 at both the sides of the DOPOS film 13, as shown in FIG.1F. The thermal oxidation also forms a tungsten nitride silicide (WSiN)film 15 having a thickness of 5nm or less between the WSi₂ film 14 andthe tungsten nitride film 16. It is to be noted a thickness above 5 nmfor the tungsten nitride silicide film 15 increases the electricresistance of the WSiN film 15 to increase the interface resistancebetween the tungsten nitride film 16 and the DOPOS film 13.

Subsequently, a 40-nm-thick silicon nitride film is formed over theentire area of the gate electrode structure 22, followed by etch backthereof to form a side-wall silicon oxide film 21 on the gate electrodestructure 22. Thereafter, a resist film not shown is formed to cover thenMOS area or a pMOS area of the silicon substrate 10, followed byimplanting impurities into the silicon substrate 10 by a self-alignmenttechnique using the gate electrode structure 22 including the side wall21 as a mask.

In the implanting step, arsenic (As) is introduced through the gateoxide film 12 into the nMOS area of the silicon substrate 10 and borondifluoride (BF₂) is introduced through the gate oxide film 12 into thepMOS area of the silicon substrate 10, whereby heavily-dopedsource/drain diffused regions 19 a and 19 b are obtained inself-alignment with the gate electrode structure 22.

Subsequently, a heat treatment is conducted at a temperature of 900 to1100 degrees C. by a RTA technique, thereby activating the impurities inthe source/drain diffused regions 19 a and 19 b. This temperature of theheat treatment allows the WSiN film 15 formed between the WSi₂ film 14and the tungsten nitride film 16 to further increase the thicknessthereof.

In the present embodiment, the heat treatments for oxidation of both thesides of the gate electrode structure 22 and for activating theimpurities in the source/drain diffuse regions 19 a and 19 b allow theWSiN film 15 having a small thickness to be formed without using adedicated heat treatment for the WSiN film 15. This simplifies theprocess for forming a gate electrode structure 22 in the semiconductordevice.

It is to be noted that the total thickness of the WSiN film 15 isobtained as the results of the heat treatments for the thermal oxidationof the side-wall structure and the impurity activation in thesource/drain diffused regions as well as the other heat treatmentsconducted after the formation of the tungsten nitride film 16 on theWSi₂ film 14, and that the total thickness of the WSiN film 15 should bepreferably between 2 and 5 nm. A thickness below 2 nm causes aninsufficient barrier function, whereas a thickness above 5 nm causes ahigher interface resistance between the tungsten nitride film 16 and theDOPOS film 13.

In the present embodiment, the presence of the WSi₂ film 14 prevents thereaction between the tungsten film 17 and the DOPOS film 13 as well asthe reaction between the tungsten nitride film 16 and the DOPOS film 14,whereby a WSiN film 15 having a smaller thickness compared to theconventional technique can be obtained. This allows the tungsten nitridefilm 16 and the WSiN film 15 to effectively act as the diffusion barrierlayers, thereby effectively preventing the reduction in the impurityconcentration of the DOPOS film 13 caused by a heat treatment andsuppressing the diffusion of the tungsten atoms from the tungsten film17.

In addition, the smaller thickness of the WSiN film 15 and the presenceof the WSi₂ film 14 between the WSiN film 15 and the DOPOS film 13allows the interface resistance between the tungsten film 17 and theDOPOS film 13 to decrease in the gate electrode structure 22 havingdiffusion barrier layers. It is to be noted that the entire tungstennitride film 16 may be converted to the WSiN film 15 depending on thetime length and the temperature of the heat treatments.

In the present embodiment, all the deposited films are patterned as awhole to form the gate electrode structure between the steps of thedeposition and the heat treatment of the layers. However, the patterningfor the gate electrode structure may be conducted after the heattreatment for forming the WSiN film. In this case, for example, a heattreatment is conducted at a temperature of 750 to 1000 degrees C. forten seconds by using a RTA technique directly after the sputtering ofthe tungsten nitride film 16 and the tungsten film 17, followed by thepatterning for the gate electrode structure 22. The thickness of theWSiN film 15 is preferably controlled by controlling the heat treatmentsfor oxidation and impurity activation as well as the other heattreatments after the formation of the tungsten nitride film 16 so thatthe resultant thickness of the WISiN film 15 resides between 2 and 5 nm.

In the present embodiment, tungsten is used as the refractory metal inthe refractory metal silicide film (WSi₂ film) 14 and the refractorymetal nitride film (tungsten nitride film) 16. The tungsten may bereplaced by titanium (Ti), wherein TiSi₂ film and TiN film are formedinstead of the WSi₂ film and the WN film 16, respectively.

In the above embodiment using tungsten as the refractory metal, a WSiNfilm 15 is formed by thermal treatments such as for forming the sidewall. In the case of using Ti as the refractory metal, it is difficultto form a TiSiN film corresponding to the WSiN film 15 by using a heattreatment, as described in Patent Publication JP-A-2000-36593. It isrecited in the publication that the gate electrode structure includingTi film, TiN film and tungsten film consecutively formed does not allowa TiSiN film having an effective diffusion barrier function to beformed.

Thus, a TiSiN film should be formed by a sputtering technique usingTiSi₂ or TiSix as a target and conducted after the deposition of theDOPOS film, or may be formed by a CVD step in a mixture gas ambientincluding titanium tetrachloride (TiCl₄) and monosilane (SiH₄) to form aTiSi₂ film, and a subsequent sputtering step using Ti as a target in amixture gas ambient including argon gas and nitrogen gas to form a TiNfilm, followed by a heat treatment to obtain the TiSiN film. In thelatter technique, the TiSiN film has a crystalline structure and not anamorphous structure, and yet has an effective diffusion barrier functionalthough this diffusion barrier function is somewhat lower than thediffusion barrier function of the WSiN film 15.

The first refractory metal in the refractory silicide film such as WSi₂film 14 and in the refractory nitride film such as WN film 16 and thesecond refractory metal in the metallic film such as tungsten film 17may be independently selected from the group consisting of tungsten,molybdenum, titanium and tantalum. Although tungsten is most suited inview of the barrier function and acid resistance property among othermetals, the other metals recited herein achieve advantages of thepresent invention and provide a low-resistance gate electrode structure.

It was confirmed that the gate electrode structure as obtained by themethod of the present embodiment exhibited a lower interface resistancebetween the tungsten nitride film 16 and the WSi₂ film 14 in theevaluation test for the interface resistance, such as shown in FIG. 2.Before the evaluation, an evaluation surface 24 of the interface portionof the DOPOS film 13 having an area of 1 μm×1 μm was exposed by removingthe top metallic electrode including W/WxN/WSi₂ films 14, 16 and 17 ofthe gate electrode structure 22 obtained by the method of theembodiment.

In the evaluation, positive and negative voltages were applied at avoltage terminal 25 with respect to a ground terminal 28, which areelectrically connected to areas of the top tungsten film 17 of the gateelectrode structure 22 via plugs 27, the areas sandwiching therebetweenthe exposed evaluation surface 24 of the interface portion of the DOPOSfilm 13 conducting a penetrating current. The voltage between anevaluation terminal 26 connected to the exposed evaluation surface 24via plugs 27 and the ground terminal 28 was measured by a voltmeter 30,whereas the penetrating current flowing through the interface portion ofthe DOPOS film 13 and the ground terminal 28 was also measured by anammeter 31.

FIG. 3 shows the result of the measured voltage-penetrating currentcharacteristic obtained in the gate electrode structure 22 manufacturedby the method of the embodiment, whereas FIG. 4 shows the result of themeasured voltage-current characteristic of a comparative example havinga conventional structure wherein WSi₂ film was not formed therein. Inthese graphs, the penetrating current (μA) is plotted against themeasured voltage (volt) by curves a1 and a2, whereas the interfaceresistance is plotted against the measured voltage by curves b1 and b2.

As shown in FIG. 4, the gate electrode structure of the conventionaltechnique exhibited a nonlinear characteristic of the penetratingcurrent (a2) and an interface resistance (b2) nearly 400Ω-μm² in thevicinity of zero volts of the measured voltage. On the other hand, thegate electrode structure of the present embodiment exhibited a linearcharacteristics of the penetrating current (a1) and an interfaceresistance (b1) below 200Ω-μm² having a lower dependency upon themeasured voltage.

Since the above embodiments are described only for examples, the presentinvention is not limited to the above embodiments and variousmodifications or alterations can be easily made therefrom by thoseskilled in the art without departing from the scope of the presentinvention.

1. A semiconductor device comprising a substrate, and a gate electrodestructure overlying said substrate, said gate electrode structureincluding a doped polysilicon (DOPOS) film having a three-layerstructure and a crystal structure with multiple crystal orientationsformed on a surface region of said substrate, a silicide film includinga first refractory metal formed on said DOPOS film, a nitride filmincluding said first refractory metal formed on said silicide film, anda metallic film including a second refractory metal different from saidfirst refractory metal formed on said nitride film.
 2. The semiconductordevice according to claim 1, wherein each of said first and secondrefractory metals is independently selected from the group consisting oftungsten, molybdenum, titanium and tantalum.
 3. A semiconductor devicecomprising a substrate, and a gate electrode structure overlying saidsubstrate, said gate electrode structure including a doped polysilicon(DOPOS) film having a three-layer structure and a crystal structure withmultiple crystal orientations formed on a surface region of saidsubstrate, a suicide film including a first refractory metal formed onsaid DOPOS film, a nitride silicide film including said first refractorymetal formed on said silicide film, and a metallic film including asecond refractory metal different from said first refractory metalformed on said nitride silicide film, wherein said gate electrodestructure further includes a nitride film including said firstrefractory metal formed between said nitride silicide film and saidmetallic film.
 4. The semiconductor device according to claim 3, whereineach of said first and second refractory metals is independentlyselected from the group consisting of tungsten, molybdenum, titanium andtantalum.
 5. The semiconductor device according to claim 1, wherein saidDOPOS film has a three-layer structure wherein the crystal structure hasthree different orientations.
 6. The semiconductor device according toclaim 3, wherein said DOPOS film has a three-layer structure wherein thecrystal structure has three different orientations.
 7. A semiconductordevice comprising a substrate, and a gate electrode structure overlyingsaid substrate, said gate electrode structure including a dopedpolysilicon (DOPOS) film having a three-layer structure and a crystalstructure with multiple crystal orientations formed on a surface regionof said substrate, a silicide film including a first refractory metalformed on said DOPOS film, a nitride film including said firstrefractory metal formed on said silicide film, and a metallic filmincluding a second refractory metal formed on said nitride film, whereineach of said first and second refractory metals is independentlyselected from the group consisting of tungsten, molybdenum, titanium andtantalum.
 8. A semiconductor device comprising a substrate, and a gateelectrode structure overlying said substrate, said gate electrodestructure including a doped polysilicon (DOPOS) film having a crystalstructure with multiple crystal orientations formed on a surface regionof said substrate, a suicide film including a first refractory metalformed on said DOPOS film, a nitride suicide film including said firstrefractory metal formed on said suicide film, and a metallic filmincluding a second refractory metal formed on said nitride silicidefilm, wherein said DOPOS film has a three-layer structure wherein thecrystal structure has three different orientations.
 9. The semiconductordevice according to claim 7, wherein said DOPOS film has a three-layerstructure wherein the crystal structure has three differentorientations.